A Graceful Figure
by lunettawolf321
Summary: If Link could spend every day of his life looking up at her statue, he would. BOTW oneshot. Mipha/Link, some mentions of Zelink.


**Disclaimer: I own nothing of the Legend of Zelda series.**

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The first time he saw the statue, he'd been in too much of a rush and too distracted by the beauty of Zora's domain, to give it more than a passing glance. At the time, it'd held no significance to him, not really. The only thought he had for it was, _pretty..., _and then he was climbing the stairs, taking them two at a time in an effort to reach the throne room as fast as possible.

The next time he looked at it, _really _ looked at it, he saw it for what it really was. It was breathtaking, mesmerizing, enchanting.

Heartbreaking.

Looking upon that statue brought a pain to him he knew no blade or arrow could possibly replicate. It tore through him, digging deep into his gut, piercing his heart, and squeezing his lungs. It burned in his throat, gathered hot and wet in his eyes. He pushed it back as best as he could, a long forgotten instinct telling him it was better if he did, safer even. He couldn't stop the heaviness in his words though as he told Sidon and Muzu that he remembered. Remembered some, at least.

He remembered Mipha's smile, small, but bright. He remembered her kind words, her gentle touch, and her steadfast belief in a tomorrow. He swore he could see every inch of who he remembered carved meticulously into the statue before him. Link wanted to ask how they'd managed to capture all that in stone. He didn't get the chance to though. Before he'd even begun to berate himself for being so dismissive of this beautiful piece of artwork, he was back to being rushed along. His instincts told him it was fine, no harm done. There wasn't time to feel remorse about not recognizing a statue of someone he had once been so close to. He had a job to do.

The next time it was a ghost, not a statue, that he gazed upon. The waterblight had been defeated, Vah Ruta was free. Mipha's spirit congratulated him and she blessed him with an ability to revive himself after death. Link could only stare though. He stared at her eyes, her cheeks, her hands, her smile. He stared at her everything. When she'd bid him farewell and he'd left Vah Ruta, Link made a mental note to tell Sidon that the statue was nothing like his sister. As beautiful and graceful as it was, Mipha was so much _more_. Mipha was something you couldn't recreate in stone.

By the time Link found himself standing in front of her statue again, he'd changed his mind about it not being good enough. He decided he just hadn't been appreciating it the way he was supposed to. The statue captured all the best things about Mipha, and not just her smile or her beauty. It showed her gracefulness, her strength. It reminded all of Zora's Domain of her kindness, her readiness to protect her people. Link just had to tell himself to look pass the handful of memories he'd gotten back of her. When he did that, his judgment was no longer clouded by who Mipha had really been. He could gaze upon her statue and truly see why the Zora cherished it. It kept a part of her with them always, a beautiful part, and Link could only just stand in front of it and wish that he were lucky enough to have something like this of her to carry around with him. That way during the night, when the panic would set in and try to convince him he was nothing more than an empty shell, a hollow copy of a person who should have died a hundred years ago, he would have a piece of Mipha there to remind him he was not a duplicate. He was Link, and he was the person she had loved. He _was_ the person she had graced with her smiles and laughs and touches. He had been and still was someone she had thought good enough to give all those things to.

Link thought taking a photograph was a much more reasonable idea then asking Sidon how he could go about getting his own Mipha statue made.

The next time he saw it, he tried not to look. Looking upon that beautiful work of art would mean acknowledging his guilt, and Link didn't think he was ready for that yet. No matter how hard he tried though, his eyes were still drawn to Mipha's smiling face, peering down at him. Link had come so far in his journey, Vah Rudania was the only Divine Beast still under the Calamity's control, and he'd gained so much of himself back. A part of him was so happy to be remembering who he was before, but another part hated it.

That was the part who looked at the Zora armor and realized he didn't deserve it.

Link had loved Mipha, and though he didn't remember saying it to her, he knew it from the feelings that he still carried with him. The warmth that filled his chest when he thought of her smile, the calm that settled over him when he recalled her laugh. The pain that shook him all the way down to his soul at the knowledge that he'd failed her. These were the remnants of a love that ran deep. The only problem was Link now remembered Mipha hadn't been the only one to inspire those feelings in him.

He now knew that at some point a hundred years ago, he had loved both Princess Zelda and Princess Mipha. Loved them both so much that the sickly stirrings of guilt still lived within him. He had felt so ashamed for feeling this way for the two of them, had felt like he was betraying both their trusts, though he knew he had never told either of them about how conflicted he was. Link wished he remembered everything, or at least remembered if he'd ever decided what to do about his feelings. Instead, all he had now was the knowledge that Mipha had been planning a future with him, and there had been a chance that he would have told her no.

He didn't deserve to have armor she had painstakingly made to fit him so perfectly and he didn't deserve to be standing in front of her statue. Mipha had deserved the world and instead, she'd gotten nothing but pain. Link considered not returning to the statue until after he'd found a way to make it up to her, make _all _of it up to her. Not just saving Hyrule, but his misleading heart as well.

He realized, only after Sidon had come to stand and gaze upon her with him, that he wasn't going to be able to do that.

Finally, after ridding Hyrule of the Calamity and making it so the spirits of his dear friends could finally move on, Link took Zelda to see the stature. He was nervous at first, a ridiculous part of himself worrying that all his thoughts over the past few months would show clearly on his face to the princess beside him. If they did, Zelda did not mention it. Instead, she gazed at the intricately carved face of the former Zora champion, an unreadable expression in her eyes. Link wondered what Zelda felt as she looked upon the stone figure. Did she find comfort in it, like Mipha's people? Or did her gut wrench in regret like Link's did? Perhaps she felt something else entirely? After all, Zelda remembered everything about before, including who their friends had really been. Link's memories were still full of blanks and gaps. He wondered which one of them was truly better off.

They stood there in silence for a long time, long enough for Sidon to feel the need to check on them. He stood beside Link and gazed bitter-sweetly at his sister's face. After another moment, Zelda stepped back and turned to face them. Link thought he saw her wipe a tear away.

"It's very beautiful, Prince Sidon. Your people have made a truly remarkable way to keep her memory alive."

Link didn't pay attention as Sidon thanked her. Instead, he closed his eyes and sent a wish to the heavens above.

He hoped that Mipha and the others were resting peacefully in the sacred realm. And he hoped that, even though he still couldn't remember all his feelings completely, Mipha knew he loved her. He prayed that she knew how important she was to him. He never could have done any of this without her, back then and now. She had been his rock, a constant source of comfort in a time where he'd felt like he'd have to hide who he was if he going to have any chance at being the hero. Mipha was truly his saving grace. He hoped one day he'd finally get to tell her thank you.

Until then, he would hold her memory close to his heart. And when the thought of her kindness and her smile and her love was not enough to chase away his demons, he would come to this statue. He'd stand here with Sidon, and maybe Zelda too, and he'd gaze upon the face of the person he'd once cherished more than anything.

And while he was looking up at her, maybe she'd be looking down at him too.


End file.
